Coventry City Council overspends on IKEA renovation by £900,000
The disused IKEA was set to be transformed into a local cultural hub
Coventry Council has admitted to overspending on its project to renovate an old IKEA shop by £900,000.
The Council blamed inflation for the rise in costs, and said that plans to transform the former IKEA shop into a cultural hub would still be going ahead.
Councillors working in the local government agreed in March to borrow more money for the project, despite opposition from other representatives, who said that the money should be spent on essential services first.
The project made a loss despite huge investment from the local council, who had previously invested in similar projects - such as St Mary's Guildhall.
Councillors have been making large cutbacks to reduce costs, with a total of £8.5 million being saved in the process.
However, many street lights were turned off overnight, car parking fees have been raised and the amount of council tax being paid for those in the highest band will go down in other efforts to make money.
This comes after it was revealed that the overall overspend by the council on services in the city reached £14.2 million, with half of the money going to social care and housing alone.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Coventry Council said: "In February 2021, Coventry City Council took the decision to acquire the former IKEA building to enable an exciting and ambitious refurbishment project.
"This will include the creation of a Collections Centre for nationally significant cultural, arts and historical artefacts, in collaboration with national partners Arts Council England and British Council as well as Culture Coventry Trust and Coventry University.
“Covid slowed the original timescales down and inflation pressures has seen costs rise. And although we have found some interim uses for the building, including a number of film and production company uses, we also took on some additional operating costs last financial year including business rates."
The council spokesperson said that the building has now been given to the construction contractor, with the completion of the project expected at the end of next year.